An Amazon Promise banner against HIV
Belen, the poorest part of Iquitos
The headquarters of Amazon Promise are in Iquitos, the jungle city in the midst of the Peruvian rain forest. It is hot and humid here as usual, or even more so, as I hear the Iguiteños complain (the coplaints about the heat are an indelible part of the local culture; however, this time they may be justified--it is over 100F daily and over 90% humidity). On the way from the airport, the taxi driver tries to avoid the morning motorcar and motorcycle traffic coming on us from every direction, all at once. We end up in Belen, the poorest part of the city, and I am instantly reminded of how life happens here: the shanty shacks whose rotten doors lead to dark, dirty corridors with empty rooms, the dessicated grandmas sitting on the doorsteps chewing on a piece of mango skin, the nothingness of powerty...this juxtaposition with the world I have just come from cannot be more pressing. After I arrive, Lupe, one of the local HIV promoters and a woman living with HIV for four years, informs me of this year^s inofficial count of HIV infections and deaths in Iquitos : over 200 cases registered at the two hospitals where antiretrovirals are distributed, and counting. This is a very rough estrimate since no one accounts for the men and women who are living with HIV and have never been tested, or have never been registered...time to get to work!
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